The Long Haul

The old X-Cargo garden is coming along nicely, although the aphids are already doing their thing down here, as evidenced by the poor soul in the bottom right of the image. These lettuce and spinach seeds are heirloom organics from Clemson University, and they grew into some beautiful specimens that have been mighty tasty. They were preceded by radishes that were huge, snappy, and spicy...just the right mix with a bottle of hoppy ale.

As for the race this weekend, I'm in for 12 hours alone. My entire team is out (pneumonia, broken bone, and funeral), so I'll be doing Florida solo, and I'm pretty excited about it. The fellow from Gone Riding was a stand up fellow, and said I could get the difference refunded (I paid $140 for the team, but the solo fee is only $60).

I bought a few accoutrements to ease the endeavor, yesterday, including my first official carbon bicycle part...a handlebar. There's no better time than the present to investigate the durability of this material I have for so long forsaken. I also put on a stem with more rise to try and avoid the inevitable axe-in-the-spine feel that usually accompanies longer treks in the woods. Thirdly, I was able to acquire a Cane Creek Thudbuster seatpost to prevent the destruction of my backside.

I'll call back Rachel Van Slyke, today.http://www.rachelvanslyke.com

She's doing a music tour on her bicycle, and she's trying to get donations for recycle-a-bicycle-type programs in each of the cities she's visiting. Very ambitious and very cool idea. Hopefully, I or the shop will be able to help her out with this in a town that so desparately needs such a program.

"See" you all after the race!